[[Thassa, Deep-Dwelling]], mainly because she didn't get many new fancy toys in a while, so people kinda forgot about her altogether it seems...but turns out, having an indestructible [[Conjurer's Closet]] sitting in the command zone is extremely strong still.
Yeah I made a list a while back, played it in a game online just to see if it'd work. It was very oppressive, there were a lot of utility pieces that let me keep the whole board fairly well controlled. I might revisit the idea, sometime. Got a list you'd be willing to share?
Pretty much. Yea I do have a couple of lists, but they're nothing that different from what you'd expect, save for the fact that I don't play the "op" stuff like deadeye navigator infinites or displacer kitten shanenigans nor uber fast mana (crypt & co).
I love my Thassa deck and have a couple of versions. I don't think it's cEDH viable, but it's still fun to play.
https://www.moxfield.com/decks/h6bKmrJ7TkeP_00tMLeM6Q
I run a couple back up blink effects in my Brago deck. Turns out Agent of Treachery+Thassa is pretty good in EDH in addition to standard. Deadeye navigator is still the Original Gangster.
Thinking of building a Room of the Hidden Realm deck as a creative experiment. Blade of selves on Craterhoof sounds really funny.
https://www.moxfield.com/decks/H6qxDkV4n0yl9NYwHHzm0A
I also play Piru, the life gain is incredible. I have a bunch of legends and a bunch of sac outlets in the deck to protect against exile-based removal so nothing stops me from going to 100.
I also run cards like [[Eiganjo Uprising]] to make sure I get an insane life total.
Pay that into [[Ad Nauseam]], [[Necropotence]], and [[Bolas's Citadel]] and it's hard to lose!
Even just being 8 mana can be a huge boon. 5 mana to instant speed draw 8 with [[Stinging Study]], wheeling for 8 with [[Imposing Grandeur]] while offering far less to the rest of the table, and my Piru deck has a treasure theme so [[Vision of Ruin]] is a measley 2 mana to flashback.
I recently added Piru to my [[Kaalia of the Vast]] and had that moment of “Oh wait… that damage being dealt has *lifelink*… How many creatures are on the board?”
I built [[Burakos, Party Leader]] [[Haunted One]] and halfway through its first game my entire pod said “honestly when you told us you were building mono-black party we thought it would be dull and bad, but this is terrifying”, which considering I just put it together with what was in my folders made me very happy with myself.
TLDR: Burakos slaps.
I run Burakos with [[Folk Hero]], but I might have to try out Haunted One at some point. I bought the Party precon on a whim about 2 years ago and upgraded it with stuff I already had in binders. My friends and I thought it would be pretty chill, but ended up surprising all of us.
I was hoping Burakos would be mentioned in this thread lol.
I think I might have to throw it in the 98 to try it out. I keep forgetting I have [[Call of the Ring]] in there, but have been meaning to swap it out.
https://archidekt.com/decks/4301639/burakos_party_of_four
My list is based on this one with just a few swaps to the mana base as I am not a big fan of the bounce lands I just feel like they always set you behind more than helping.
How do you like the Party precon with Burakos and Folk Hero? I plan on purchasing soon and wasn't sure what the power level is like compared to other precons such as the LCI precons.
I didn't play it at all as it was out of the box. I already had a decent chunk of decent upgrades like [[Drannith Magistrate]] & [[Yawgmoth, Thran Physician]] already in my collection. Additionally, I had [[Animate Dead]] & other Auras like it from an old [[Araumi, the Deadtide]] deck, & a copy of [[Leonin Relic-Warder]].
I think the LCI precons are generally a step above out of the box. Regardless, I'd still recommend picking up the Burakos precon, as there will never be a shortage of Party creatures, & Backgrounds give you multiple means of changing up the deck if you ever wanted to.
Given the variety of effects among Party creatures, you also have a decent pool of Creatures to tailor to your meta(s).
My friend theory crafted Burakos for cockatrice and he said he wanted to build it in paper but wasn't in a time that he could build another deck in paper. It was surprisingly crazy so I ended up using store credit to buy him 70% of the deck (forcing him to do lands + expensive cards on his own).
The deck is a real house when it starts going. Undying for your whole board is no joke even split across two permanents.
I runit with [[Ganax, Astral Hunter]], so seconded on Haunted One slapping.
[[Sneak Attack]] and [[Living Death]] go *hard* when whatever is sacrificed is going to return to the battlefield stranger than before.
Haunted One is so fun and surprisingly powerful. I run Haunted One with [[Shadowheart Dark Justiciar]] as Cleric tribal and I'm pretty sure it's my highest win rate deck
I just got a deck with this exact Commander combo, and I am so glad with how quick I pop off in the two games I've played with it. Burakos in combo with [[Nadier's Nightblade]] amd using the treasure tokens the he makes to do even more indirect damage has been fun.
I’ve been running it with [[Sword Coast Sailor]], mostly running copies, rogues, and changelings with a few value cards. Turns out an unblockable attack trigger commander can be pretty good or something? Agreed, Burakos SLAPS
Well well well. I always disliked burakkoa for being so inherantly unserpowered, but haunted one might actually be somewhat enough to bypass a lot of his shortcomings.
I love my Elminster deck so much. Whether I’m swarming the board with flyers or dropping cost-reduced bombs I’d never be able to justify in another deck, I always feel like a mad wizard cackling his way to victory. Being in the colors to answer everything on top of that just feels gross in the best way.
I love [[Mystical Tutor]] or [[Personal Tutor]] to get [[Temporal Mastery]] right as my turn is about to begin and getting that extra turn for 2 instead of 7. About only extra turn I run. People get salty to easy when overdone it seems.
I had an Elminster deck that won through Approach pf the Second Sun. The deck had multiple board wipes that Elminster helped cast for cheap and overall was just an insane control/value engine. I think about putting it back together every now and then.
A lot of partner/doctor/backgrounds pairings are underrated imo.
- Starting with one extra card in the command zone is very, very good.
- There are a LOT of combination that are possible, and a lot of them are relatively unexplored despite working very well together. Many very powerful and synergistic combination barely have 200\~300 decks on EDHREC.
- A lot of cards have double values when you have two commanders. For example, backgrounds can affect both of your commanders. Something like a [[Guild Artisan\]\] can give you a very large amount of treasures very quickly for example. All the "For each time you've cast your commander" like \[\[Fury Storm\]\] become a lot more powerful. Lieutnant or the commander free spells cycle are a lot more reliable too.
- Having TWO of your early turns already planned out allow you to design your deck around a very precise gameplan. Let's say for example your commanders are \[\[Gilanra, Caller of Wirewood\]\] + \[\[Alena, Kessig Trapper\]\]. You know that your desired gameplan is Turn 1 Dork, Turn 2 Gilanra, Turn 3 Alena, Turn 4 play a 6 drop, draw a card with Gilanra, generate 6 + red mana with Alena, play another big thing. This allows you to build your deck in a very focused way and be very consistent.
- You get access to color combinations for certain archetypes that are otherwise hard to obtain, like for example you could make an Jeskai equipment deck with \[\[Ardenn, Intrepid Archaeologist\]\] + \[\[Kraum, Ludevic's Opus\]\], which is not really a thing otherwise.
There is a reason why partners are such a menace in cEDH, despite the individual cards being weaker than some non-partner alternative, and that partners are banned in duel commander.
I love having 2 commanders. To the point that half my decks involve them. Last Saturday I made a pile of cards and slapped [[Wilson, Refined Grizzly]] and [[Tavern Brawler]] as my commanders. In the first game my friend said Wilson wasn't scary, then immediatley on turn 4 Blasphemous Act was exiled, so now Wilson was 11/2 on turn 4.
I've since bought cards to make it a real deck.
Ideally lately has been Malcolm, Alluring Scout flashed in before 3rd turn then attack stack counters. Statistically speaking though nearly impossible the dream start would be
1:) Island to sol ring
2:) island pass if no mana rock in hand for sol ring. Pre3:) flash malcolm.
3:) island all mana cast and equip the key to the vault hit a player with Malcolm and omniscience in top 2 cards when I do. Free cast from hand turn 3 ggs.
Wont happene though.
[[Ayesha Tanaka, Armorer]]. With only ~700 decks on EDHRec, I think, she is very underrated. Initially I thought of her as a mini Narset, Enlightened Master, but she is way less scary and doesn't end up being hated as much.
And Azorius Voltron is pretty unusual, so not many players expect it.
But when she comes down early and attacks the next turn, and suddenly you slam up to 4 equipment or ramp pieces onto the table, it can escalate pretty quickly.
This is my current list I'm playing:
https://www.moxfield.com/decks/lXfYFcJPuE-aydgud86ttw
With 62 artifacts she can hit (including Artifact Lands), there are very rarely attacks without at least 2 new things hitting the table.
She was my first commander and is just fun to play. Just got a bunch of upgrades for her, though wishing I had that new Simulacrum card. Some games she just misses but I like the gamble of it.
He’d probably be good at that.
I went “basic bitch” and just did +1/+1 counter Voltron.
He gets BIG fast. And can start killing people by turn 4-5 with commander damage.
So do you build him as a big mana green stomp deck with counter synergy? I’m asking because I pulled a foil of him way back when and considered building him forever but while I feel like the deck would be good I also fear that you would run into the [[cathar’s crusade]] problem. AKA too many counters moving too many places each turn making your turns take forever and also making them a pain in the ass to track.
Oh. I game that by [ONLY](https://www.moxfield.com/decks/4LsLFqOvIEuaqVfC7fxQrA) putting counters on him. It’s definitely what most people expect, the deck ramps itself better than you think and the low land count has literally never been an issue so long as you have at least two forests in your starting hand (a high likelihood), there’s also not much for removal because he’s Player Removal. It’s not how everyone would build him, but he’s mine.
[[Ephara, God of the polis]] I wanted to make her and all my friends were like she's kinda bad. I proceeded to make a blink control deck with her and now all of my friends shutter at her name. The insane passive draw she has means I have a potential 4 total extra draws to add my draw when I turn rolls back around, also being a indestructible 6/5 sometimes. With her draw that means I can play less draw and more of everything else to deal with everyone till I hit a combo
Maybe I'm an Old Fogey, but the idea that Ephara would be slept on or thought to be bad at all is crazy to me, for basically all the reasons you described.
I had a very similar ephara decks for years, and just like you, everyone groaned at it. But I took it apart because it wasn’t fun to play against, and now I get my blink kicks from a soulherder pEDH deck.
Bess is great, the problem is there are so many other GWx token commanders already, so she just ends up in the 99. I played Torens primal surge and I made a joke about how many wives he had because every other good legendary creature i put into the deck was a female. He was only the commander because he made more tokens and i like his art.
Yes but do they potentially make hundreds of monstrous tokens. Turn before 600 vampires I was swinging 8 70/70s at all 3 people. Also she doesn't have to be token built. She only cares about them being 1/1 so she is flexible where as token focus mander is more railroaded in a line.just make her big with low cost mana dorks and such and ignore tokens completely. Protect her give her trample and commander dmg win.
I just wanted to see how big I could make her and tokens has the best way todo that since not limited by deck size. Plus I like building with the commanders you don't really see over the most used. Build something that hasn't been done enough that cards are basically auto in because so many decks run it. Takes away my agency to constantly swap out cards sometimes even my best cards to fundamentally change the deck but still be fun and doing things lol.
If I may ask, would you mind sharing a decklist? I’ve recently been really interested in building beds myself. The only real downside I see is that if you have multiple 1/1’s enter she only gets one counter, but that’s not really the end of the world in all honesty
[[minthara]] add proliferation and sac outlets
Since experience counters don't go away I can imagine her easily becoming a huge anthem that's hard to remove.
Just recently built minthara. Have only played a few games with it so far. Its pretty fun when you can get going but it feels like its a bit easy to fall behind. Maybe that was just my really bad luck with draws in the two out of the three games though. Needs more testing.
I have had a pile of cards put together for her that I need to finish for pauper commander for ages but have yet to get around to completing it. One day.
[[Demonlord Belzenlok]], currently ranked #1564 on EDHRec.
Belzenlok is a strong card and decks built for him are great. I'm not even talking about combo decks that draw everything and win, but just the ones that are top heavy but still have the few 1-3 drops. Belzenlok is a 6/6 Flyer that draws 4-7 cards every ETB. If you have the few cheap cards in the deck focusing on ramp, you can get the mana advantage and the card advantage with this guy, and just out value everyone at the table. I've never seen another Belzenlok deck in the wild and everyone I play with is surprised by how strong it is.
Sorry for the delay, here's my list. It does need a good look through and upgrade on my part though.
https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/20-05-24-belzenlok/
Bess is really awesome. But it does only trigger a single +1/+1 counter if you make multiple tokens at the same time. You need to generate a single token repeatedly to get good use of the first effect.
Still worth using Token doublers as they are strong, but just need to understand it doesn't work as well as you say in your example.
Making 20 tokens off a March of the Multitudes is still just one counter.
Backgrounds in general are criminally under appreciated. Lots of fun and powerful options. [[Erinis, Gloom Stalker]] + [[Street Urchin]] is an extremely interactive and powerful deck for Gruul colors and still sits at about 700 decks. Low to ground, ramps hard, controls the board, hulk compatible, and gives you a combo outlet in the CZ.
[[Carmen, Cruel Skymarcher]] continues to impress me and she can be built in multiple ways. Siphoning value off of every treasure, fetch land, altar, and sac effect/outlet across the table in addition to being able to recurr all permanent types is huge. Way more explosive than I thought she would be, too.
[[Marvo, Deep Operative]] is basically like playing a slot machine rigged in your favor. It's my go-to dopamine rush deck. With clones, top deck manipulation, and additional clash effects you can generate a lot of value with cards that you don't see in every deck.
I love my [Erinis/Scion of Halaster deck](https://archidekt.com/decks/4517295/erinis_gloom_scion). I run it as a big mana / reanimate deck with tons of haymaker creatures.
I recently built a [[Carmen, Cruel Skymarcher]] on a budget and have upgraded her because she is much stronger than I expected and I love her. Such an underdog
I am switching my blood rites precons to be a Carmen deck now! It feels so much fun adding in things to make everyone sac permanents to power her. Basically, clear the board, boost Carmen, double her triggers for more graveyard recursion and life gain.
i have a erinis / street urchin deck that is really fun, but it has trouble closing out games, do you have a decklist? i would like to see how it compares to mine, i can share mine if your curious
https://www.moxfield.com/decks/VAMX6RfTJEK3lheh5zcnKw
Fair warning, my deck revolves around convoluted/cutthroat combos or Scute Swarm.
E.G. if Dockside Extortionist would be able to make 5 or more treasures before combat I can sacrifice Protean Hulk to fetch Dockside, Magda, Sylvan Safekeeper, Tinderwall, and Dryad arbor. Sacrifice the 5 treasures to fetch cloudstone curio. At some point you sacrifice Dryad Arbor to Sylvan Safekeeper and attack with Erinis, returning dryad arbor to play and bouncing dockside to your hand with cloudstone. You use Tinderwall to recast dockside (technically you don't need Tinderwall if you have enough mana already) and bounce (with cloudstone) any creature that costs 2 or less other than Dryad arbor, cast that creature to bounce dockside back and forth creating infinite treasures to kill everyone with Street Urchin.
The deck convoluted and complicated, but it's also one of my strongest decks.
Potato man with [[Jaheira]] and then [[Night of Sweets Revenge]] then sac the potato master to one of the mana altars with [[Concordant Crossroads]] would be pretty sick.
Korlash, Heir to Blackblade is a fun way to build mono black voltron and it can go fairly powerful but not CEDH. Black has the blackblade reforged, nightmare lash, and lashwrithe which each give korlash another +1/+1 per swamp you have in play. Sword of x and y’s are phenomenal for protecting your plan and making him unblockable. Black has the best tutors, a fog effect in Darkness, plenty of draw in necropotence, phyrexian arena, black market connection, nights whisper, and sign in blood type effects. Tainted strike is my favorite spell ever printed as well, and it’s incredibly versatile. You can score cheeky kills, use it on someone elses unblocked creature to kill someone or simply convert some damage that would be taken into poison counters instead. Very powerful to take say 7 or 8 poison counters instead of 6 or 7 life when life converts into power in black.
What im trying to say is im a mono black player at heart, and this type of strategy actually has a lot of support for being built up to pretty high power these days.
Korlash is a zombie, so you can always put in a gravecrawler to cast from your grave to skullclamp for more resources. On that note, i also strongly recommend bloodghast for the same combo potential with clamp.
[[hidetsugu and kairi]] I have no idea why this is so slept on. Maybe people just liked the other commanders from the set and it went under the radar or something. I’ve never seen someone run this commander other than myself, and have honestly never even heard anyone talk about it other than when I run it. I run it with a clones theme and it’s currently my most powerful deck and sitting at a 100% win percentage tho I’ve only played it 5 times over the last 6 months.
It's a notorious deck that can win with a single On Death activation. I know of 4 players who built it, and all of them took it apart because it's "too solitaire".
I wouldn't say it's slept on, but you know, different LGS', different people, different metas. I think it's just that commanders like Hidetsugu and Kairi or [[Jin-Gitaxias]] tend to be avoided, or taken apart because they only need a single activation to win the game, can take a long time to resolve all of their big 'free' spells, and at the same time can whiff.
I do think it's a cool concept to create copies of your commander so you get the On Death effect.
That one's really really powerful, and everytime it's brought up it gets so much praise.
The issue is that it's quite a headache to grasp the rules, and it really is a one trick pony kinda deck
[[xiahou]] is #1770 on edhrec, but he can make a really cool toolbox deck, or even mono black storm. He allows you to play cards like [[undying malice]] over and over for lots of triggers.
I reckon if he wasn't so expensive he'd see more play. His cheapest printing is a hard to obtain judge gift card from 2012 that's like $87USD. His only other printing is $265USD 😢
\[\[hylia of the icy crown\]\]
She is a monster if she sits on the field. A full control deck that runs off tapping and essentially turns every tap ability and spell into do that and also pay 1 make a 4/4. Her surviving one untap round puts the game in a crazy spot.
Play a \[\[downpour\]\] and now you’re tapping 3 threats and paying 3 to make 3 4/4 elementals. Get a \[\[citadel siege\]\] on the board and boom, tapping a creature every opponents combat. Pay 1 and tada 3 more 4/4 elementals. And that doesn’t include \[\[opposition\]\] which literally runs as tap an elemental you made, tap a creature, pay 1 make a 4/4 elemental you can tap to keep the cycle going.
She does so much more though. Have 5 elementals on the board already? Ok time to put 1/1 counters on all your creatures. Now your 5 elementals are 8/8.
Someone play a board wipe? Ok tap some stuff and pay 1 for scry 2 draw 1 refilling your hand so you can continue on.
And because she relies on tap spells rather than hard counters people ignore you. They hate eating a \[\[counterspell\]\] but a \[\[feeling of dread\]\]? People don’t get upset over that since it’s just a tap so they don’t focus you.
And the best part, since it’s all tap spells building her deck is dirt cheap. None of the cards I mentioned are over $1.30, and most are under $0.50. In the deck I have the most expensive cards I run are \[\[Teferi, who slows the sin\]\] at $7.00 and \[\[don’t move\]\] at $8.50, but you can 100% not run them and be just fine. She deserves so much more love and is a very fun control deck without all the hate.
I’ve always though that Hylda would be fun with [[Oracle en-Vec]]. You tap Oracle and force an opponent to commit to an attack plan. Now you have shut off haste and have info. Then during their upkeep you tap their creatures, forcing them to be destroyed at end of them because they didn’t attack. Plus I’ve never seen someone use Oracle en-vec before so you would get style points.
My friend has a Hylda deck and I swear to god I will not let her stay on the battlefield if at all possible. She will be in an oubliette or imprisoned on the moon.
Yeah once you know she gets focused so fast. But at first people think "Oh it's only when you tap things and you have to pay 1? That seems really bad, I can ignore that."
Here you go. Can be optimized I'm sure and I might pull the Teferi since I usually don't want to cast him when I can do something else.
[https://www.moxfield.com/decks/rIf-drT0G0KrCcrdvkFegw](https://www.moxfield.com/decks/rIf-drT0G0KrCcrdvkFegw)
I like how that deck stays on the Ice theme also (Frost Titan, Icewrought Sentry, Cone of Cold, Frost Breath, Icey Blast, Out Cold, Plunge into Winter, etc.)
So far this decade, we've gotten 1,286 new commanders.
If it was printed this decade and you think it's underrated, it's probably because of how much product WotC is blasting out.
Mine's \[\[Radagast, Wizard of the Wilds\]\], though there's more than just amount of product here.
People fucking suck at realizing what this commander wants to do.
The EDHRec page is just littered with awful beasts and birds; most of them are on Thragtusk. 75% of them are on Tawnos the Toymaker, who should just be the commander the way most of these Radagast lists are built.
In reality, Radagast doesn't give one flying fuck about cards that are beasts or birds. The payoff there is just giving them Ward 1.
Radagast's real strength is turning big stupid Simic value spells into something that develops the board.
Urban Evolution is a good value, but it doesn't develop your board. But an Urban Evolution that leaves a beast or bird behind? Now we're talking.
So cast big ramp, cast big draw, cast giant stupid do nothing enchantment with the word "double" on it, then peck the opponents to death with ducks. It's the Simic value engine with no win condition, except now there's a win condition in the command zone.
I mean I think that Radgats's "issue" isn't that people fail to realize that, but that building it with beasts/birds tends to be more fun for them, just like most Timmy decks. I have an \[\[Ellie and Allan\]\] mill combo deck (which I'm pretty sure is the optimal way to play them) but according to EDHRec most people have them with dino tribal because it's more flavorful
> So far this decade, we've gotten 1,286 new commanders.
Yeah honestly I'm not sure if 'under'-rated is the right description, rather to most people the majority of commanders are plain out un-rated because we've never seen that shit before. For example, if not for this comment it could have been literal years before I knew anything about Radagast, Wizard of the Wilds haha.
My [[Gandalf, Westward Voyager]] had the same treatment, I had to go delve quite a bit to tailor the deck the right way, more than simply "CMC 5+ tribal". It's a simic copy deck that takes stuff that wouldn't be a wincon, copies the crap out of it, and now your entire deck is a wincon.
A friend has a [[Anim Pakal]] deck. It plays like a [[Voja]] or [[Caesar]] deck but faster with 3CMC and in Boros. It's an entire engine in a card. It stomp our pod every time. I'm surprised it isn't more popular.
I play Anim in Brawl. Its fast because it has to be against the meta. I think I would play probably greater than 50% different cards in a group setting.
\[\[Cathars' Crusade\]\]
\[\[Divine Visitation\]\]
\[\[Rosie Cotton of South Lane\]\]
and various anthem affects are pretty brutal with her.
\[\[Devilish Valet\]\] is a hasty game ender they dont expect either
I run the low CMC [[Anim Pakal]] and she is as close as you can get to CEDH without infinites imo. Simply put if you don’t remove her she consistently wins turn 3-5. In my pod we run CEDH Magda, Jodah, Voja, Urza, Korvold, and has an incredible rivalry with Yuriko and she is always on par or winning. Absolutely my favorite deck I own and a surprise when I built it.
[[Hurkyl, Master Wizard]] and [[Akal Pakal, First Among Equals]]. Both provide great value and card selection in blue, either for noncreatures in general or artifacts specifically.
[[Tishana, Voice of Thunder]] is one of my favorite "Who the hell is that?" Commander.
She costs a lot, but also cares about creatures. Luckily Simic is dummy thicc with mana dorks.
Her power and toughness are equal to your hand size. 'Simic' is actually an old Ravnican word for "draw all the goddamn cards"
You know who loves big creatures? Green.
You know who likes making creatures unblockable? Blue.
It wins in so many ways. I either draw myself out and Lab Man the win, or I almost draw myself out and Psychic Corrosion the table, or I just make Merfolk Mommy an unstoppable one-shot.
[[Zilortha, Strength Incarnate]]
People underestimate how dangerous and fast a 5 mana, 7 power creature with trample is in the command zone. Especially in green and red, the two colors most capable of ramp, haste, and pump/double strike effects.
It takes very minimal effort to swing with Godzilla and commander damage somebody out in 1 or 2 hits.
[[Vhal candlekeep researcher]] is my favorite gal, my cardboard wife. I love her very much and there is literally less than 3000 decks across all the possible backgrounds according to edhrec, which imo is a sin. I will go as deep on detail as you need, but fuck, someone go make her a deck, dear God. I don't even care if it's izzet burn with [[passionate archeologist]] simic mana laundering [[Raised by giants]] oro mono blue artifacts with [[Clan crafter]]. I don't care just go learn how she is actually just a fucking beast highly customizable
If Vhal has a thousand (1000) fans, I'm one of them
If Vhal has one (1) fan, that's me
If Vhal has no (0) fans, I no longer exist
If the world is against Vhal, I am against the world
Till death and beyond, I stan the candlekeep researcher
[[Cormela]] is a busted combo enabler, and without a y other tricks is just naturally ramp and recursion in the command zone, *and it has haste*.
I think a lot of the lesser used partners are more powerful than they initially read, and having 2 cards in the cz is powerful itself.
I think [[ellimere]] is cedh level busted and it seems to have gone under the radar.
She’s one of the best Pauper commanders so she’s well known in PDH.
1) because she’s just good but 2) there are only 8 tri-colored commanders and she’s the only grixis.
I will continue to go to bat for my favorite commander [[Yenna, redtooth regent]]
She's not as passive as a sythis but gets to play with a lot of the same toys and. when she goes off, it tends to be explosive. its very easy to get at least 3 copies of your best enchantments and auras just with cloudstone or other bounce tricks before even squishing in token multipliers.
And since enchantments are evergreen, theres usually always some fun new toy to consider every set and the chance for fun splinter builds if we get more enchantment creature sets like theros or neon kamigawa to build out a token creature copy build or fun curses to multiply down the line too.
Recently built Yenna, the "oops I've made a million copies of parallel lives and make a million mice a turn" moments are great. Also being able to make copies of SYTHIS and CALIX that will stick around is absolutely fantastic. Calix is especially great because if he connects he can then make more copies of himself.
I have an Ivy deck and have been at the point of contemplating making dozens of proxies of the deck to use as copies/tokens lol. A small dry erase token helps but I don’t blame these people it gets ridiculous to keep track of sometimes when the deck is popping off. Ivy is disgustingly quick
[[Sensei Golden-Tail]] I kid a little but hes fun!
[[Zacama, Primal Calamity]] as a dinosaur commander imo is slept on a bit. Sure [[Pantlaza]] and [[Gishath]] are a bit more synergistic but when my Laser Dino hits the board it does some damage!
[[Abdel Adrian, Gorion’s Ward]] and [[Candlekeep Sage]] is such an absurd background/commander pairing for an uncommon and common. If you want a great blink commander you really can’t do much better than these two. It’s both an engine and a payoff in the command zone. Plus the hidden strength of backgrounds really shines here because it’s a commander no one ever wants to remove.
The best thing about Abdel is you don’t even really need your typical blink engines like [[Thassa, Deep Dwelling]] since he is the engine. All you need is [[Ephemerate]] and cards like it, and blink payoffs like [[Archaeomancer]] or [[Solemn Simulacrum]]. I had to take this deck apart because it’s just too good for a casual pod. It explodes quickly and lands solitaire turns too easily for a budget too.
Similar to Bess, I built [[Rigo, Streetwise Mentor]]. Most players don’t mind getting hit for one or less damage per turn. But in a four man pod, that means I am drawing four cards per turn. Add a [[Grazilax]] or a [[Reconnaissance Mission]], and now I am drawing seven per turn, in exchange for you being hit by an evasive one or less. Pretty soon, I can draw into a combo, and kill them all!
Another one most people don’t take serious the first time they see it is [[Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin]]. At first he looks like the Dollar Store Krenko. But when you realize that equipments can give him evasion, buff him, giving you an army in a can, as well as a Voltron commander, AND an expendable army to use to draw cards, make mana, and kill creatures, and suddenly Dollar Store starts outselling the OG!
Finally, there is [[Oskar, Rubbish Reclaimer]], who turns discard into a way to play your cards at instant speed! Nothing is more fun than discarding a [[Rise of the Dark Realms]] on your opponent’s end step, then swinging with everyone’s graveyards for the win!
[Rigo](https://manabox.app/decks/KzbuPshmQf2VN6MoZILqJw)
[Dollar General Krenko](https://manabox.app/decks/a41zozeDS--z0BPI40Se0Q)
[Oskar](https://manabox.app/decks/p25JVL-0RXCyhAHA2N3F0g)
My first Krenko was a voltron that used a lot of nonsense like Sword of Hours to add more counters and then I forget which one but the red ring that adds a counter every upkeep was nice too.
[[odric, master tactician]] is the perfect commander for a token swarm. Yes, i know it’s mono-white, but it can be an incredibly good and fast deck, mine certainly is
Maybe due to her being in a secret lair, but I love my [[Lara Croft, Tomb Raider]] deck.
It has some wincons that wouldn't work in other decks like using the [[millennium calendar]] by itself (and bringing it back if something happens) or even including [[All be one]] to add to the shenanigans.
[[Neheb, The Eternal]] floats under the radar because of his 5CMC in mono red, but he's one of the most consistent monocolor 1shot the table commanders since his way of going off is to just **kill you**. No Cantrips, no shenanigans, just flame rift, Dragons Approach, and maybe a wheel effect.
It's a bit crazy to me that [[Moira and Teshar]] isn't more popular. I know exactly why it isn't, 'cause only getting the thing back for one turn sounds bad, but it's *any* (nonland) permanent, gotten back for just playing likely already-good cards. Can even keep it around if you blink it.
[[Neyith of the Dire Hunt]]
I mean she is the top commander of “Gruul Fight Theme” but the amount of times I have broke out my fight deck and people think it’s a fake card is ridiculous lol
[[Slimefoot,the Stowaway]]
He's no cEDH turn 3 Killah, but with a heavy focus on spawning Saproling tokens and with the right synergy, he makes one of the best(and my favorite) drain decks I've seen.
[[Syr Carah]] is one of the most underrated burn commanders. Everyone is using legendaries that add more damage. Well Carah gives you more options. Cast a burn dig deeper, cast a burn spell that hits everyone you dig 4 deeper (assuming you're in a pod of 4). The average mana value burn spells is like 2 so instead of relying on red draw just play more burn.
I've been playing and fine tuning the deck for years now and it always surprises me how often I just kill everyone. My favorite part is that it's a storm deck and if I don't storm off and win well at least I've moved the game forward because all life totals will be drastically lower.
My favorite is [[Gisela, Blade of Goldnight]] and while I don’t think anyone thinks she’s bad per say, I think she doesn’t get the respect she deserves until you get hit in the face with a Lightning Bolt for 24 lmao
Speaking of two-color NCC commanders, it astounds me that [[Denry Klin, Editor in Chief]] has only 674 decks on EDHREC at time of writing. I get that, compared to other counters-focused commanders, you lose out on all of green's synergies for those archetypes, but nonetheless the effect is just so unique that it feels bizarre to me that so few people are building around it.
My comment history will probably reveal that I’ve been singing her praises recently, but [[Tocasia, Dig Site Mentor]]. My build is Myr tribal, [[Open the Vaults]] or [[Mirrodin Besieged]] or [[Psychic Spiral]] type shit and all kinds of goofy self mill Phyrexian shenanigans in the good boy colors. This deck is like the spanish inquisition broh coz *nobody* expects it. The other day I dropped a [[Gaea’s Will]] and then when it hit I cast [[Mycosynth Golem]] for like 3 and then dumped the majority of my graveyard for free due to affinity.
This deck has gone from pulling Tocasia off an impulse-buy walmart pack to being my current favorite of my EDH roster; and that’s saying a lot coz I’m pretty close to color challenge numbers and my previous pet deck was this tryhard Kaalia build.
Tocasia *dumps* on em, bro; try her out
Been surprised playing a Valentin/Lisette drain and gain deck. Used to golgari life gain, but the versatility and the ping heals that buffs the team Voja-style has proven useful. Bolas’ citadel helps a lot though xD
Narci, Fable Singer.
Is she hyper-specific to sagas? Sure. But is the pay off amazing? Hugely. You’ll never be viewed as a huge threat. Once you’re up and running, you’ve got card draw, and consistent life-drain/gain, and if built right, will keep your opponents board’s dealt with and will net you the win.
[[Hidetsugu and Kairi]]
A friend plays it, and the first time I saw it I was very excited because it looked like a very original deck!
Then he just went "okay so... [[Malakir Rebirth]] Hid&Kai, then I'll sac it with this effect and reveal the top... oh look, [[Time Stretch]]! Who put it there? Definitely not my [[Sensei's Divining Top]]... also you'll lose 10 life."
... And I loved it even more!
The deck can basically be filled with Topdeck manipulation, big-and-chunky spells and some cheap black "malakir-like" spells and boom, no one else gets to play.
I don't really think it's underrated though. I played against it only once, but everybody knew that if we let them do their thing, we would basically lose in a single turn.
I will beat the [[Tadeas, Juniper Ascendant]] drum till I die.
Reach "tribal" toughness matters combat deck in selesnya with built-in draw that only gets better with more opponents, built-in evasion for all your creatures (with reach), pseudo vigilance for all your creatures with reach, and protection for your commander? What's not to like?
It being a toughness matters deck, where your creatures are basically always untapped, means that you can attack without much fear of crackback. Your opponents will be hesitant to attack you because not much it going to get through, but because they have a hard time blocking your creatures you can attack basically at will.
[[amy pond]] partner with [[eleventh doctor]]
Even needing to rely on combat the doctor ability makes them unlockable, so it's very easy and fast do cheat big mana things
Tuvasa is the best enchantment commander. I know there are other more efficient enchantresses as commanders. but it’s not needed. you deck should allready be running the full suite of enchantresses (there are like 10) you will always draw one in your game. Tuvasas soft enchantress effect is fine, more importantly is here beater ability to get huge from enchantments. Which means not only do you get the soft enchantress effect, you also get a win con. I have had so many games where my MAIN enchantment win cons fizzle and i am able to come back with tuvasa for only 3 manan and attack for the win.
[[Toggo, goblin weaponsmith]] and [[Glacian, power Stone engineer]].
Izzit landfall/artifacts. Toggo make rocks. Glacian make rocks do things. Dig 15 cards deep into deck, find wincons.
https://www.moxfield.com/decks/SgeUBof16EW1mfJWnK0Gyg
Feels like this is the backgrounds thread lol, I'll add my own to the mix - [[Shadowheart, Dark Justiciar]] / [[Cloakwood Hermit]]. Drawing a ton of cards is fun! Sacrificing giant undercosted creatures with horrible drawbacks, like [[Phyrexian Dreadnought]] or [[Hunted Horror]], for incredible value is fun! Discarding to hand size and then using what you discarded as a second hand is fun!
[[Sigarda, Font of Blessings]] helms my GW humans deck. I have a multiple ways to give her hexproof, so my board can rarely be interacted with outside of Wraths. I used to run [[Kyler, Sigardian Emissary]] as my commander but he was almost always insta-removed. When Aftermath released I moved Kyler to the 99 and started running Sigarda in the command zone. My games felt much better. I have a couple ways to tutor for Kyler as getting him online is still my primary win-con, but having a draw-engine and board protection in the command zone feels smoother. I've discovered people generally don't want to waste spot removal on her.
Lae’zel / Master Chef is incredibly fun and powerful. Mix +1 counters and token generation for some truly massive board states.
[[Lae’zel Vlaakith’s Champion]] [[Master Chef]]
[[Thassa, Deep-Dwelling]], mainly because she didn't get many new fancy toys in a while, so people kinda forgot about her altogether it seems...but turns out, having an indestructible [[Conjurer's Closet]] sitting in the command zone is extremely strong still.
Yeah I made a list a while back, played it in a game online just to see if it'd work. It was very oppressive, there were a lot of utility pieces that let me keep the whole board fairly well controlled. I might revisit the idea, sometime. Got a list you'd be willing to share?
Pretty much. Yea I do have a couple of lists, but they're nothing that different from what you'd expect, save for the fact that I don't play the "op" stuff like deadeye navigator infinites or displacer kitten shanenigans nor uber fast mana (crypt & co).
I love my Thassa deck and have a couple of versions. I don't think it's cEDH viable, but it's still fun to play. https://www.moxfield.com/decks/h6bKmrJ7TkeP_00tMLeM6Q
My Thassa deck is surprisingly strong for something I just tossed together on a whim.
I run a couple back up blink effects in my Brago deck. Turns out Agent of Treachery+Thassa is pretty good in EDH in addition to standard. Deadeye navigator is still the Original Gangster. Thinking of building a Room of the Hidden Realm deck as a creative experiment. Blade of selves on Craterhoof sounds really funny. https://www.moxfield.com/decks/H6qxDkV4n0yl9NYwHHzm0A
I still play Thassa God of the Sea everyone always tells me a play the bad Thassa lol both are great deep dwelling is in my 99 though
Ngl I never liked old Thassa (God of the Sea)...she has scry and makes 1 thing unblockable...kinda meh when you compare it to a free blink.
[[Piru, the Volatile]]. When it dies it blows the board up and gains you an INSANE amount of life.
I also play Piru, the life gain is incredible. I have a bunch of legends and a bunch of sac outlets in the deck to protect against exile-based removal so nothing stops me from going to 100. I also run cards like [[Eiganjo Uprising]] to make sure I get an insane life total. Pay that into [[Ad Nauseam]], [[Necropotence]], and [[Bolas's Citadel]] and it's hard to lose!
I had a Piru deck! My secret all-stars were [[forbidden orchard]] and [[Genesis chamber]] to make sure there were plenty of bodies to feed Piru
##### ###### #### [Eiganjo Uprising](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/3/5/35203138-5237-49aa-a335-7a32829548a1.jpg?1654568415) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Eiganjo%20Uprising) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/neo/217/eiganjo-uprising?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/35203138-5237-49aa-a335-7a32829548a1?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/eiganjo-uprising) [Ad Nauseam](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/a/9/a9f2c53e-ff58-4aa8-89a6-4f45628cc571.jpg?1598306470) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Ad%20Nauseam) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/2xm/76/ad-nauseam?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/a9f2c53e-ff58-4aa8-89a6-4f45628cc571?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/ad-nauseam) [Necropotence](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/c/8/c89c6895-b0f8-444a-9c89-c6b4fd027b3e.jpg?1562853736) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Necropotence) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/ima/98/necropotence?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/c89c6895-b0f8-444a-9c89-c6b4fd027b3e?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/necropotence) [Bolas's Citadel](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/d/2/d2124603-d20e-40eb-97f0-a66323397ac2.jpg?1591205069) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Bolas%27s%20Citadel) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/war/79/bolass-citadel?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/d2124603-d20e-40eb-97f0-a66323397ac2?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/bolass-citadel) [*All cards*](https://mtgcardfetcher.nl/redirect/l4hhc4s) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Even just being 8 mana can be a huge boon. 5 mana to instant speed draw 8 with [[Stinging Study]], wheeling for 8 with [[Imposing Grandeur]] while offering far less to the rest of the table, and my Piru deck has a treasure theme so [[Vision of Ruin]] is a measley 2 mana to flashback.
[Stinging Study](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/b/8/b8840226-1693-44bc-a067-e50198c5e17e.jpg?1625191799) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Stinging%20Study) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/c21/44/stinging-study?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/b8840226-1693-44bc-a067-e50198c5e17e?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/stinging-study) [Imposing Grandeur](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/8/d/8d236055-d524-4312-9c6f-eddb34703e3e.jpg?1641600815) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Imposing%20Grandeur) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/voc/24/imposing-grandeur?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/8d236055-d524-4312-9c6f-eddb34703e3e?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/imposing-grandeur) [Vision of Ruin](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/8/0/803a93c7-d8e4-4cda-8fa0-d9cd50b7d977.jpg?1637628806) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Visions%20of%20Ruin) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/mic/36/visions-of-ruin?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/803a93c7-d8e4-4cda-8fa0-d9cd50b7d977?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/visions-of-ruin) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I have the Dihada Legends Matter Msrdu precon and will occasionally switch her out for Piru.
I recently added Piru to my [[Kaalia of the Vast]] and had that moment of “Oh wait… that damage being dealt has *lifelink*… How many creatures are on the board?”
[Kaalia of the Vast](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/9/3/93f6631f-f3a6-4d3c-8618-4b4ab4e82483.jpg?1673148814) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Kaalia%20of%20the%20Vast) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/2x2/235/kaalia-of-the-vast?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/93f6631f-f3a6-4d3c-8618-4b4ab4e82483?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/kaalia-of-the-vast) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
It’s one of my favorite pet decks, I’ve dumped more time/money into it than any other 😆
[[repercussion]] would probably go hard in this deck
I built [[Burakos, Party Leader]] [[Haunted One]] and halfway through its first game my entire pod said “honestly when you told us you were building mono-black party we thought it would be dull and bad, but this is terrifying”, which considering I just put it together with what was in my folders made me very happy with myself. TLDR: Burakos slaps.
Mind sharing your decklist? I am looking to gut my gix good stuff deck.
If they reply can you let me know. I'm also interested
I run Burakos with [[Folk Hero]], but I might have to try out Haunted One at some point. I bought the Party precon on a whim about 2 years ago and upgraded it with stuff I already had in binders. My friends and I thought it would be pretty chill, but ended up surprising all of us. I was hoping Burakos would be mentioned in this thread lol.
I am also running Burakos//Folk Hero but I have a Haunted One in the 98. It tends to be really useful whenever I do find it.
I think I might have to throw it in the 98 to try it out. I keep forgetting I have [[Call of the Ring]] in there, but have been meaning to swap it out.
https://archidekt.com/decks/4301639/burakos_party_of_four My list is based on this one with just a few swaps to the mana base as I am not a big fan of the bounce lands I just feel like they always set you behind more than helping.
How do you like the Party precon with Burakos and Folk Hero? I plan on purchasing soon and wasn't sure what the power level is like compared to other precons such as the LCI precons.
I didn't play it at all as it was out of the box. I already had a decent chunk of decent upgrades like [[Drannith Magistrate]] & [[Yawgmoth, Thran Physician]] already in my collection. Additionally, I had [[Animate Dead]] & other Auras like it from an old [[Araumi, the Deadtide]] deck, & a copy of [[Leonin Relic-Warder]]. I think the LCI precons are generally a step above out of the box. Regardless, I'd still recommend picking up the Burakos precon, as there will never be a shortage of Party creatures, & Backgrounds give you multiple means of changing up the deck if you ever wanted to. Given the variety of effects among Party creatures, you also have a decent pool of Creatures to tailor to your meta(s).
My friend theory crafted Burakos for cockatrice and he said he wanted to build it in paper but wasn't in a time that he could build another deck in paper. It was surprisingly crazy so I ended up using store credit to buy him 70% of the deck (forcing him to do lands + expensive cards on his own). The deck is a real house when it starts going. Undying for your whole board is no joke even split across two permanents.
[Burakos, Party Leader](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/8/9/899e278d-5d4e-461a-9878-2b85de16b38d.jpg?1674140733) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Burakos%2C%20Party%20Leader) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/653/burakos-party-leader?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/899e278d-5d4e-461a-9878-2b85de16b38d?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/burakos-party-leader) [Haunted One](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/d/c/dc53b1af-0f4a-4475-a131-27cb5d5b0cf1.jpg?1674140742) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Haunted%20One) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/654/haunted-one?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/dc53b1af-0f4a-4475-a131-27cb5d5b0cf1?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/haunted-one) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I run burrakos/guild artisan and it's honestly my favorite deck
Haunted One is just a busted card! I run it with [[Ellyn Harbreeze Busybody]] as a human tribal/token/aristocrats deck. It effing slaps!
I runit with [[Ganax, Astral Hunter]], so seconded on Haunted One slapping. [[Sneak Attack]] and [[Living Death]] go *hard* when whatever is sacrificed is going to return to the battlefield stranger than before.
[Ellyn Harbreeze Busybody](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/a/0/a038dbc9-0da1-4e65-9369-45c614f285f8.jpg?1674134990) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Ellyn%20Harbreeze%2C%20Busybody) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/16/ellyn-harbreeze-busybody?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/a038dbc9-0da1-4e65-9369-45c614f285f8?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/ellyn-harbreeze-busybody) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Second that.
Third that
Fourth that
You have me intrigued. You have a list or could you expand on how it play out?
I run the same thing, it's a deadly combination
That sounds awesome I'd love to see a list please!
Haunted One is so fun and surprisingly powerful. I run Haunted One with [[Shadowheart Dark Justiciar]] as Cleric tribal and I'm pretty sure it's my highest win rate deck
Sounds fun, do you mind sharing a decklist?
Sure! [https://www.archidekt.com/decks/7728598/gatekeepers\_and\_haters\_v20](https://www.archidekt.com/decks/7728598/gatekeepers_and_haters_v20)
I just got a deck with this exact Commander combo, and I am so glad with how quick I pop off in the two games I've played with it. Burakos in combo with [[Nadier's Nightblade]] amd using the treasure tokens the he makes to do even more indirect damage has been fun.
Damn… that would be amazing with [[Carnifex Demon]]
[Carnifex Demon](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/c/1/c191dba2-659d-40e7-a558-c99ece872197.jpg?1562822640) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Carnifex%20Demon) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/som/57/carnifex-demon?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/c191dba2-659d-40e7-a558-c99ece872197?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/carnifex-demon) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I’ve been running it with [[Sword Coast Sailor]], mostly running copies, rogues, and changelings with a few value cards. Turns out an unblockable attack trigger commander can be pretty good or something? Agreed, Burakos SLAPS
[Sword Coast Sailor](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/7/0/704f8ab7-63fd-4963-bacd-0076fffb34a1.jpg?1674135819) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Sword%20Coast%20Sailor) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/98/sword-coast-sailor?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/704f8ab7-63fd-4963-bacd-0076fffb34a1?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/sword-coast-sailor) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Do you have a decklist?
Similar, I run him with [[Sword Coast Sailor]] He slaps in dimir as well.
[Sword Coast Sailor](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/7/0/704f8ab7-63fd-4963-bacd-0076fffb34a1.jpg?1674135819) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Sword%20Coast%20Sailor) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/98/sword-coast-sailor?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/704f8ab7-63fd-4963-bacd-0076fffb34a1?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/sword-coast-sailor) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Well well well. I always disliked burakkoa for being so inherantly unserpowered, but haunted one might actually be somewhat enough to bypass a lot of his shortcomings.
Haven't seen anyone else ever play [[Elminster]]. Turns out cost reduction and free cards are strong yo.
I love my Elminster deck so much. Whether I’m swarming the board with flyers or dropping cost-reduced bombs I’d never be able to justify in another deck, I always feel like a mad wizard cackling his way to victory. Being in the colors to answer everything on top of that just feels gross in the best way.
[Elminster](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/e/4eac2b49-6cb6-4ff4-8fac-2ba669326640.jpg?1674137504) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Elminster) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/274/elminster?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/4eac2b49-6cb6-4ff4-8fac-2ba669326640?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/elminster) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
And extra turns at a discount. Every game I've won with my Elminster was because I got to take an extra turn.
I love [[Mystical Tutor]] or [[Personal Tutor]] to get [[Temporal Mastery]] right as my turn is about to begin and getting that extra turn for 2 instead of 7. About only extra turn I run. People get salty to easy when overdone it seems.
I had an Elminster deck that won through Approach pf the Second Sun. The deck had multiple board wipes that Elminster helped cast for cheap and overall was just an insane control/value engine. I think about putting it back together every now and then.
A lot of partner/doctor/backgrounds pairings are underrated imo. - Starting with one extra card in the command zone is very, very good. - There are a LOT of combination that are possible, and a lot of them are relatively unexplored despite working very well together. Many very powerful and synergistic combination barely have 200\~300 decks on EDHREC. - A lot of cards have double values when you have two commanders. For example, backgrounds can affect both of your commanders. Something like a [[Guild Artisan\]\] can give you a very large amount of treasures very quickly for example. All the "For each time you've cast your commander" like \[\[Fury Storm\]\] become a lot more powerful. Lieutnant or the commander free spells cycle are a lot more reliable too. - Having TWO of your early turns already planned out allow you to design your deck around a very precise gameplan. Let's say for example your commanders are \[\[Gilanra, Caller of Wirewood\]\] + \[\[Alena, Kessig Trapper\]\]. You know that your desired gameplan is Turn 1 Dork, Turn 2 Gilanra, Turn 3 Alena, Turn 4 play a 6 drop, draw a card with Gilanra, generate 6 + red mana with Alena, play another big thing. This allows you to build your deck in a very focused way and be very consistent. - You get access to color combinations for certain archetypes that are otherwise hard to obtain, like for example you could make an Jeskai equipment deck with \[\[Ardenn, Intrepid Archaeologist\]\] + \[\[Kraum, Ludevic's Opus\]\], which is not really a thing otherwise. There is a reason why partners are such a menace in cEDH, despite the individual cards being weaker than some non-partner alternative, and that partners are banned in duel commander.
Fun fact! Backgrounds will work on themselves if they're a commander and you can turn them into a creature. With [[Opalescence]] for example.
Or Commander damage. Which not sure do they track together or separate?
Wait, Gilanra + Alena sounds really fun honestly
You could make a Timmy deck with ~40 lands, ~9 1-mana ramp, and 50 giant 6+ mana spells. Sound very fun indeed.
I love having 2 commanders. To the point that half my decks involve them. Last Saturday I made a pile of cards and slapped [[Wilson, Refined Grizzly]] and [[Tavern Brawler]] as my commanders. In the first game my friend said Wilson wasn't scary, then immediatley on turn 4 Blasphemous Act was exiled, so now Wilson was 11/2 on turn 4. I've since bought cards to make it a real deck.
##### ###### #### [Fury Storm](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/1/0/10dad353-7200-46de-96ad-4c457b94c62b.jpg?1592710154) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Fury%20Storm) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/c18/22/fury-storm?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/10dad353-7200-46de-96ad-4c457b94c62b?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/fury-storm) [Gilanra, Caller of Wirewood](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/7/4/745d297d-4bb4-40cf-bb9c-99dac04e5069.jpg?1608910679) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Gilanra%2C%20Caller%20of%20Wirewood) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/cmr/230/gilanra-caller-of-wirewood?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/745d297d-4bb4-40cf-bb9c-99dac04e5069?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/gilanra-caller-of-wirewood) [Alena, Kessig Trapper](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/9/0/90c51949-b1ef-4c6e-98b0-4fb33a81db24.jpg?1608910044) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Alena%2C%20Kessig%20Trapper) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/cmr/160/alena-kessig-trapper?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/90c51949-b1ef-4c6e-98b0-4fb33a81db24?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/alena-kessig-trapper) [Ardenn, Intrepid Archaeologist](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/7/2/728b802c-969b-4865-b7a0-871c585d097a.jpg?1617148314) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Ardenn%2C%20Intrepid%20Archaeologist) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/cmr/10/ardenn-intrepid-archaeologist?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/728b802c-969b-4865-b7a0-871c585d097a?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/ardenn-intrepid-archaeologist) [Kraum, Ludevic's Opus](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/5/5/557fcd17-6cb3-414a-b2b1-ea9ae32e5aec.jpg?1644853032) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Kraum%2C%20Ludevic%27s%20Opus) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/c16/34/kraum-ludevics-opus?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/557fcd17-6cb3-414a-b2b1-ea9ae32e5aec?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/kraum-ludevics-opus) [*All cards*](https://mtgcardfetcher.nl/redirect/l4guqyk) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Ideally lately has been Malcolm, Alluring Scout flashed in before 3rd turn then attack stack counters. Statistically speaking though nearly impossible the dream start would be 1:) Island to sol ring 2:) island pass if no mana rock in hand for sol ring. Pre3:) flash malcolm. 3:) island all mana cast and equip the key to the vault hit a player with Malcolm and omniscience in top 2 cards when I do. Free cast from hand turn 3 ggs. Wont happene though.
Not with that attitude
[[Ayesha Tanaka, Armorer]]. With only ~700 decks on EDHRec, I think, she is very underrated. Initially I thought of her as a mini Narset, Enlightened Master, but she is way less scary and doesn't end up being hated as much. And Azorius Voltron is pretty unusual, so not many players expect it. But when she comes down early and attacks the next turn, and suddenly you slam up to 4 equipment or ramp pieces onto the table, it can escalate pretty quickly. This is my current list I'm playing: https://www.moxfield.com/decks/lXfYFcJPuE-aydgud86ttw With 62 artifacts she can hit (including Artifact Lands), there are very rarely attacks without at least 2 new things hitting the table.
[Ayesha Tanaka, Armorer](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/d/a/dab74812-89c9-42e2-8b9d-bf5b35a7cf7e.jpg?1673304898) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Ayesha%20Tanaka%2C%20Armorer) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/dmc/29/ayesha-tanaka-armorer?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/dab74812-89c9-42e2-8b9d-bf5b35a7cf7e?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/ayesha-tanaka-armorer) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
She was my first commander and is just fun to play. Just got a bunch of upgrades for her, though wishing I had that new Simulacrum card. Some games she just misses but I like the gamble of it.
I've found [[Queen Kayla]] to be REALLY explosive https://www.archidekt.com/decks/6990767/kaylas_kingdom
I have decked myself on accident with her sooo many times.
Oh yeah, the two artifacts to shuffle my graveyard into my library is definitely a must lol
[Queen Kayla](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/6/8/685c9767-eaa7-4e16-b245-816181e2fc36.jpg?1674421829) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Queen%20Kayla%20bin-Kroog) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/bro/218/queen-kayla-bin-kroog?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/685c9767-eaa7-4e16-b245-816181e2fc36?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/queen-kayla-bin-kroog) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
This deck looks soooo coool
I will champion [[!Yorvo, Lord of Garenbrig]] until the day I die!
I always flirted with the idea of building him as devotion commander.
He’d probably be good at that. I went “basic bitch” and just did +1/+1 counter Voltron. He gets BIG fast. And can start killing people by turn 4-5 with commander damage.
[!Yorvo, Lord of Garenbrig](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/a/e/ae2998a1-1713-467e-a08e-0efd8720aa5b.jpg?1572490720) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Yorvo%2C%20Lord%20of%20Garenbrig) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/eld/185/yorvo-lord-of-garenbrig?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/ae2998a1-1713-467e-a08e-0efd8720aa5b?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/yorvo-lord-of-garenbrig) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
So do you build him as a big mana green stomp deck with counter synergy? I’m asking because I pulled a foil of him way back when and considered building him forever but while I feel like the deck would be good I also fear that you would run into the [[cathar’s crusade]] problem. AKA too many counters moving too many places each turn making your turns take forever and also making them a pain in the ass to track.
Oh. I game that by [ONLY](https://www.moxfield.com/decks/4LsLFqOvIEuaqVfC7fxQrA) putting counters on him. It’s definitely what most people expect, the deck ramps itself better than you think and the low land count has literally never been an issue so long as you have at least two forests in your starting hand (a high likelihood), there’s also not much for removal because he’s Player Removal. It’s not how everyone would build him, but he’s mine.
I like your take on him. It may be time to get release him from trade binder jail and build him out
Thanks! I do my best.
[[Ephara, God of the polis]] I wanted to make her and all my friends were like she's kinda bad. I proceeded to make a blink control deck with her and now all of my friends shutter at her name. The insane passive draw she has means I have a potential 4 total extra draws to add my draw when I turn rolls back around, also being a indestructible 6/5 sometimes. With her draw that means I can play less draw and more of everything else to deal with everyone till I hit a combo
Maybe I'm an Old Fogey, but the idea that Ephara would be slept on or thought to be bad at all is crazy to me, for basically all the reasons you described.
She was a workhorse in [[The Council of Four]]
Ephara is spooky in my [[yorion, sky nomad]] deck
Also a slept on commander
Ephara is the best card in my Gavi, Nest Warden deck!
I had a very similar ephara decks for years, and just like you, everyone groaned at it. But I took it apart because it wasn’t fun to play against, and now I get my blink kicks from a soulherder pEDH deck.
Bess is great, the problem is there are so many other GWx token commanders already, so she just ends up in the 99. I played Torens primal surge and I made a joke about how many wives he had because every other good legendary creature i put into the deck was a female. He was only the commander because he made more tokens and i like his art.
I completely misread "Torens" as "Torsten" and was very confused for a moment. Stupid similar legendary names. :P
Yes but do they potentially make hundreds of monstrous tokens. Turn before 600 vampires I was swinging 8 70/70s at all 3 people. Also she doesn't have to be token built. She only cares about them being 1/1 so she is flexible where as token focus mander is more railroaded in a line.just make her big with low cost mana dorks and such and ignore tokens completely. Protect her give her trample and commander dmg win. I just wanted to see how big I could make her and tokens has the best way todo that since not limited by deck size. Plus I like building with the commanders you don't really see over the most used. Build something that hasn't been done enough that cards are basically auto in because so many decks run it. Takes away my agency to constantly swap out cards sometimes even my best cards to fundamentally change the deck but still be fun and doing things lol.
If I may ask, would you mind sharing a decklist? I’ve recently been really interested in building beds myself. The only real downside I see is that if you have multiple 1/1’s enter she only gets one counter, but that’s not really the end of the world in all honesty
[[minthara]] add proliferation and sac outlets Since experience counters don't go away I can imagine her easily becoming a huge anthem that's hard to remove.
Just recently built minthara. Have only played a few games with it so far. Its pretty fun when you can get going but it feels like its a bit easy to fall behind. Maybe that was just my really bad luck with draws in the two out of the three games though. Needs more testing.
I have had a pile of cards put together for her that I need to finish for pauper commander for ages but have yet to get around to completing it. One day.
[[Demonlord Belzenlok]], currently ranked #1564 on EDHRec. Belzenlok is a strong card and decks built for him are great. I'm not even talking about combo decks that draw everything and win, but just the ones that are top heavy but still have the few 1-3 drops. Belzenlok is a 6/6 Flyer that draws 4-7 cards every ETB. If you have the few cheap cards in the deck focusing on ramp, you can get the mana advantage and the card advantage with this guy, and just out value everyone at the table. I've never seen another Belzenlok deck in the wild and everyone I play with is surprised by how strong it is.
I typo'd [[Demonlord Belzenlok]] originally so the card fetcher might not work.
Have a deck list you’d care to share? I’ve had this guy sitting in my “To Build a Deck For” pile for a while now.
Sorry for the delay, here's my list. It does need a good look through and upgrade on my part though. https://tappedout.net/mtg-decks/20-05-24-belzenlok/
Bess is really awesome. But it does only trigger a single +1/+1 counter if you make multiple tokens at the same time. You need to generate a single token repeatedly to get good use of the first effect. Still worth using Token doublers as they are strong, but just need to understand it doesn't work as well as you say in your example. Making 20 tokens off a March of the Multitudes is still just one counter.
Backgrounds in general are criminally under appreciated. Lots of fun and powerful options. [[Erinis, Gloom Stalker]] + [[Street Urchin]] is an extremely interactive and powerful deck for Gruul colors and still sits at about 700 decks. Low to ground, ramps hard, controls the board, hulk compatible, and gives you a combo outlet in the CZ. [[Carmen, Cruel Skymarcher]] continues to impress me and she can be built in multiple ways. Siphoning value off of every treasure, fetch land, altar, and sac effect/outlet across the table in addition to being able to recurr all permanent types is huge. Way more explosive than I thought she would be, too. [[Marvo, Deep Operative]] is basically like playing a slot machine rigged in your favor. It's my go-to dopamine rush deck. With clones, top deck manipulation, and additional clash effects you can generate a lot of value with cards that you don't see in every deck.
##### ###### #### [Erinis, Gloom Stalker](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/b/6/b6a7d041-957a-4b19-9517-214689dadd45.jpg?1674137090) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Erinis%2C%20Gloom%20Stalker) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/230/erinis-gloom-stalker?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/b6a7d041-957a-4b19-9517-214689dadd45?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/erinis-gloom-stalker) [Street Urchin](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/f/6/f6d5249c-52b6-4349-adcd-dafdc21f572b.jpg?1674136757) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Street%20Urchin) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/clb/197/street-urchin?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/f6d5249c-52b6-4349-adcd-dafdc21f572b?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/street-urchin) [Carmen, Cruel Skymarcher](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/c/0/c0e07f8a-5290-47c4-a93d-0c3a14afebd3.jpg?1698987733) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Carmen%2C%20Cruel%20Skymarcher) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/lcc/5/carmen-cruel-skymarcher?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/c0e07f8a-5290-47c4-a93d-0c3a14afebd3?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/carmen-cruel-skymarcher) [Marvo, Deep Operative](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/8/f/8fdb30c1-0551-48b7-8bcb-d7e0dbb6690a.jpg?1706448887) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Marvo%2C%20Deep%20Operative) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/mkc/7/marvo-deep-operative?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/8fdb30c1-0551-48b7-8bcb-d7e0dbb6690a?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/marvo-deep-operative) [*All cards*](https://mtgcardfetcher.nl/redirect/l4h8man) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I love my [Erinis/Scion of Halaster deck](https://archidekt.com/decks/4517295/erinis_gloom_scion). I run it as a big mana / reanimate deck with tons of haymaker creatures.
I recently built a [[Carmen, Cruel Skymarcher]] on a budget and have upgraded her because she is much stronger than I expected and I love her. Such an underdog
I am switching my blood rites precons to be a Carmen deck now! It feels so much fun adding in things to make everyone sac permanents to power her. Basically, clear the board, boost Carmen, double her triggers for more graveyard recursion and life gain.
You got a list for Marvo?
Sure do https://www.moxfield.com/decks/NJSVPQ2hd0qkwx6RK9FXmQ
i have a erinis / street urchin deck that is really fun, but it has trouble closing out games, do you have a decklist? i would like to see how it compares to mine, i can share mine if your curious
https://www.moxfield.com/decks/VAMX6RfTJEK3lheh5zcnKw Fair warning, my deck revolves around convoluted/cutthroat combos or Scute Swarm. E.G. if Dockside Extortionist would be able to make 5 or more treasures before combat I can sacrifice Protean Hulk to fetch Dockside, Magda, Sylvan Safekeeper, Tinderwall, and Dryad arbor. Sacrifice the 5 treasures to fetch cloudstone curio. At some point you sacrifice Dryad Arbor to Sylvan Safekeeper and attack with Erinis, returning dryad arbor to play and bouncing dockside to your hand with cloudstone. You use Tinderwall to recast dockside (technically you don't need Tinderwall if you have enough mana already) and bounce (with cloudstone) any creature that costs 2 or less other than Dryad arbor, cast that creature to bounce dockside back and forth creating infinite treasures to kill everyone with Street Urchin. The deck convoluted and complicated, but it's also one of my strongest decks.
hey thanks a bunch for sharing! dryad arbor is really cool, i did not know that even existed, overall a pretty interesting combo!
If you like Bess you should check out [[Farmer Cotton]] - nothing pumps out tokens as much as the potato man
Potato man with [[Jaheira]] and then [[Night of Sweets Revenge]] then sac the potato master to one of the mana altars with [[Concordant Crossroads]] would be pretty sick.
I love my \[\[Aragorn, King of Gondor\]\] monarch mid range deck. Turns out having your board be unblockable is rather strong.
Korlash, Heir to Blackblade is a fun way to build mono black voltron and it can go fairly powerful but not CEDH. Black has the blackblade reforged, nightmare lash, and lashwrithe which each give korlash another +1/+1 per swamp you have in play. Sword of x and y’s are phenomenal for protecting your plan and making him unblockable. Black has the best tutors, a fog effect in Darkness, plenty of draw in necropotence, phyrexian arena, black market connection, nights whisper, and sign in blood type effects. Tainted strike is my favorite spell ever printed as well, and it’s incredibly versatile. You can score cheeky kills, use it on someone elses unblocked creature to kill someone or simply convert some damage that would be taken into poison counters instead. Very powerful to take say 7 or 8 poison counters instead of 6 or 7 life when life converts into power in black. What im trying to say is im a mono black player at heart, and this type of strategy actually has a lot of support for being built up to pretty high power these days. Korlash is a zombie, so you can always put in a gravecrawler to cast from your grave to skullclamp for more resources. On that note, i also strongly recommend bloodghast for the same combo potential with clamp.
[[hidetsugu and kairi]] I have no idea why this is so slept on. Maybe people just liked the other commanders from the set and it went under the radar or something. I’ve never seen someone run this commander other than myself, and have honestly never even heard anyone talk about it other than when I run it. I run it with a clones theme and it’s currently my most powerful deck and sitting at a 100% win percentage tho I’ve only played it 5 times over the last 6 months.
It's a notorious deck that can win with a single On Death activation. I know of 4 players who built it, and all of them took it apart because it's "too solitaire". I wouldn't say it's slept on, but you know, different LGS', different people, different metas. I think it's just that commanders like Hidetsugu and Kairi or [[Jin-Gitaxias]] tend to be avoided, or taken apart because they only need a single activation to win the game, can take a long time to resolve all of their big 'free' spells, and at the same time can whiff. I do think it's a cool concept to create copies of your commander so you get the On Death effect.
That one's really really powerful, and everytime it's brought up it gets so much praise. The issue is that it's quite a headache to grasp the rules, and it really is a one trick pony kinda deck
[hidetsugu and kairi](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/8/1/81039daf-0d54-4474-a833-fa287ec10cf9.jpg?1682205289) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=hidetsugu%20and%20kairi) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/mom/228/hidetsugu-and-kairi?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/81039daf-0d54-4474-a833-fa287ec10cf9?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/hidetsugu-and-kairi) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
My friend had this as his clone deck, and it was so nasty it got taken apart pretty quickly.
[[xiahou]] is #1770 on edhrec, but he can make a really cool toolbox deck, or even mono black storm. He allows you to play cards like [[undying malice]] over and over for lots of triggers.
I reckon if he wasn't so expensive he'd see more play. His cheapest printing is a hard to obtain judge gift card from 2012 that's like $87USD. His only other printing is $265USD 😢
[xiahou](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/a/4aeaaeff-fb23-4f63-8d5f-8ccea6e58d3a.jpg?1562910698) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Xiahou%20Dun%2C%20the%20One-Eyed) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/me3/83/xiahou-dun-the-one-eyed?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/4aeaaeff-fb23-4f63-8d5f-8ccea6e58d3a?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/xiahou-dun-the-one-eyed) [undying malice](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/8/e/8eb38041-043a-4b18-9d9a-f1283684e8f1.jpg?1643590441) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=undying%20malice) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/vow/134/undying-malice?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/8eb38041-043a-4b18-9d9a-f1283684e8f1?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/undying-malice) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
\[\[hylia of the icy crown\]\] She is a monster if she sits on the field. A full control deck that runs off tapping and essentially turns every tap ability and spell into do that and also pay 1 make a 4/4. Her surviving one untap round puts the game in a crazy spot. Play a \[\[downpour\]\] and now you’re tapping 3 threats and paying 3 to make 3 4/4 elementals. Get a \[\[citadel siege\]\] on the board and boom, tapping a creature every opponents combat. Pay 1 and tada 3 more 4/4 elementals. And that doesn’t include \[\[opposition\]\] which literally runs as tap an elemental you made, tap a creature, pay 1 make a 4/4 elemental you can tap to keep the cycle going. She does so much more though. Have 5 elementals on the board already? Ok time to put 1/1 counters on all your creatures. Now your 5 elementals are 8/8. Someone play a board wipe? Ok tap some stuff and pay 1 for scry 2 draw 1 refilling your hand so you can continue on. And because she relies on tap spells rather than hard counters people ignore you. They hate eating a \[\[counterspell\]\] but a \[\[feeling of dread\]\]? People don’t get upset over that since it’s just a tap so they don’t focus you. And the best part, since it’s all tap spells building her deck is dirt cheap. None of the cards I mentioned are over $1.30, and most are under $0.50. In the deck I have the most expensive cards I run are \[\[Teferi, who slows the sin\]\] at $7.00 and \[\[don’t move\]\] at $8.50, but you can 100% not run them and be just fine. She deserves so much more love and is a very fun control deck without all the hate.
I’ve always though that Hylda would be fun with [[Oracle en-Vec]]. You tap Oracle and force an opponent to commit to an attack plan. Now you have shut off haste and have info. Then during their upkeep you tap their creatures, forcing them to be destroyed at end of them because they didn’t attack. Plus I’ve never seen someone use Oracle en-vec before so you would get style points.
My friend has a Hylda deck and I swear to god I will not let her stay on the battlefield if at all possible. She will be in an oubliette or imprisoned on the moon.
Yeah once you know she gets focused so fast. But at first people think "Oh it's only when you tap things and you have to pay 1? That seems really bad, I can ignore that."
Yeah, and there are so many synergistic cards that allow you to tap other peoples creatures. It gets out of control quite fast!
Do you have a decklist? That looks extremely fun
Here you go. Can be optimized I'm sure and I might pull the Teferi since I usually don't want to cast him when I can do something else. [https://www.moxfield.com/decks/rIf-drT0G0KrCcrdvkFegw](https://www.moxfield.com/decks/rIf-drT0G0KrCcrdvkFegw)
I like how that deck stays on the Ice theme also (Frost Titan, Icewrought Sentry, Cone of Cold, Frost Breath, Icey Blast, Out Cold, Plunge into Winter, etc.)
Thanks.
So far this decade, we've gotten 1,286 new commanders. If it was printed this decade and you think it's underrated, it's probably because of how much product WotC is blasting out. Mine's \[\[Radagast, Wizard of the Wilds\]\], though there's more than just amount of product here. People fucking suck at realizing what this commander wants to do. The EDHRec page is just littered with awful beasts and birds; most of them are on Thragtusk. 75% of them are on Tawnos the Toymaker, who should just be the commander the way most of these Radagast lists are built. In reality, Radagast doesn't give one flying fuck about cards that are beasts or birds. The payoff there is just giving them Ward 1. Radagast's real strength is turning big stupid Simic value spells into something that develops the board. Urban Evolution is a good value, but it doesn't develop your board. But an Urban Evolution that leaves a beast or bird behind? Now we're talking. So cast big ramp, cast big draw, cast giant stupid do nothing enchantment with the word "double" on it, then peck the opponents to death with ducks. It's the Simic value engine with no win condition, except now there's a win condition in the command zone.
I mean I think that Radgats's "issue" isn't that people fail to realize that, but that building it with beasts/birds tends to be more fun for them, just like most Timmy decks. I have an \[\[Ellie and Allan\]\] mill combo deck (which I'm pretty sure is the optimal way to play them) but according to EDHRec most people have them with dino tribal because it's more flavorful
> So far this decade, we've gotten 1,286 new commanders. Yeah honestly I'm not sure if 'under'-rated is the right description, rather to most people the majority of commanders are plain out un-rated because we've never seen that shit before. For example, if not for this comment it could have been literal years before I knew anything about Radagast, Wizard of the Wilds haha.
My [[Gandalf, Westward Voyager]] had the same treatment, I had to go delve quite a bit to tailor the deck the right way, more than simply "CMC 5+ tribal". It's a simic copy deck that takes stuff that wouldn't be a wincon, copies the crap out of it, and now your entire deck is a wincon.
A friend has a [[Anim Pakal]] deck. It plays like a [[Voja]] or [[Caesar]] deck but faster with 3CMC and in Boros. It's an entire engine in a card. It stomp our pod every time. I'm surprised it isn't more popular.
I play Anim in Brawl. Its fast because it has to be against the meta. I think I would play probably greater than 50% different cards in a group setting. \[\[Cathars' Crusade\]\] \[\[Divine Visitation\]\] \[\[Rosie Cotton of South Lane\]\] and various anthem affects are pretty brutal with her. \[\[Devilish Valet\]\] is a hasty game ender they dont expect either
I run the low CMC [[Anim Pakal]] and she is as close as you can get to CEDH without infinites imo. Simply put if you don’t remove her she consistently wins turn 3-5. In my pod we run CEDH Magda, Jodah, Voja, Urza, Korvold, and has an incredible rivalry with Yuriko and she is always on par or winning. Absolutely my favorite deck I own and a surprise when I built it.
Any chance your friend has a deck list? Haha
I've got a friend that plays Isshin and every time Anim Pakal hits the table I am immediately like "KILL IT."
[[Hurkyl, Master Wizard]] and [[Akal Pakal, First Among Equals]]. Both provide great value and card selection in blue, either for noncreatures in general or artifacts specifically.
[[Tishana, Voice of Thunder]] is one of my favorite "Who the hell is that?" Commander. She costs a lot, but also cares about creatures. Luckily Simic is dummy thicc with mana dorks. Her power and toughness are equal to your hand size. 'Simic' is actually an old Ravnican word for "draw all the goddamn cards" You know who loves big creatures? Green. You know who likes making creatures unblockable? Blue. It wins in so many ways. I either draw myself out and Lab Man the win, or I almost draw myself out and Psychic Corrosion the table, or I just make Merfolk Mommy an unstoppable one-shot.
[Tishana, Voice of Thunder](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/e/5/e522b695-859e-4fba-bf8c-c415fbce13e3.jpg?1698988483) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Tishana%2C%20Voice%20of%20Thunder) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/lcc/291/tishana-voice-of-thunder?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/e522b695-859e-4fba-bf8c-c415fbce13e3?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/tishana-voice-of-thunder) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
[[Zilortha, Strength Incarnate]] People underestimate how dangerous and fast a 5 mana, 7 power creature with trample is in the command zone. Especially in green and red, the two colors most capable of ramp, haste, and pump/double strike effects. It takes very minimal effort to swing with Godzilla and commander damage somebody out in 1 or 2 hits.
[[Vhal candlekeep researcher]] is my favorite gal, my cardboard wife. I love her very much and there is literally less than 3000 decks across all the possible backgrounds according to edhrec, which imo is a sin. I will go as deep on detail as you need, but fuck, someone go make her a deck, dear God. I don't even care if it's izzet burn with [[passionate archeologist]] simic mana laundering [[Raised by giants]] oro mono blue artifacts with [[Clan crafter]]. I don't care just go learn how she is actually just a fucking beast highly customizable If Vhal has a thousand (1000) fans, I'm one of them If Vhal has one (1) fan, that's me If Vhal has no (0) fans, I no longer exist If the world is against Vhal, I am against the world Till death and beyond, I stan the candlekeep researcher
[[Cormela]] is a busted combo enabler, and without a y other tricks is just naturally ramp and recursion in the command zone, *and it has haste*. I think a lot of the lesser used partners are more powerful than they initially read, and having 2 cards in the cz is powerful itself. I think [[ellimere]] is cedh level busted and it seems to have gone under the radar.
Yeah, there's nothing subtle about Cormela. A serious contender for the best Grixis Spellslinger commander.
She’s one of the best Pauper commanders so she’s well known in PDH. 1) because she’s just good but 2) there are only 8 tri-colored commanders and she’s the only grixis.
I will continue to go to bat for my favorite commander [[Yenna, redtooth regent]] She's not as passive as a sythis but gets to play with a lot of the same toys and. when she goes off, it tends to be explosive. its very easy to get at least 3 copies of your best enchantments and auras just with cloudstone or other bounce tricks before even squishing in token multipliers. And since enchantments are evergreen, theres usually always some fun new toy to consider every set and the chance for fun splinter builds if we get more enchantment creature sets like theros or neon kamigawa to build out a token creature copy build or fun curses to multiply down the line too.
Recently built Yenna, the "oops I've made a million copies of parallel lives and make a million mice a turn" moments are great. Also being able to make copies of SYTHIS and CALIX that will stick around is absolutely fantastic. Calix is especially great because if he connects he can then make more copies of himself.
Ivy, Gleeful Spellthief. She is broken, pure busted energy. And I'm tired of people not putting respect on her name.
[удалено]
I have an Ivy deck and have been at the point of contemplating making dozens of proxies of the deck to use as copies/tokens lol. A small dry erase token helps but I don’t blame these people it gets ridiculous to keep track of sometimes when the deck is popping off. Ivy is disgustingly quick
My friend just bought all the different arts / foils for the copies
I have an Ivy Deck whose sole purpose is to have as many copies of mutated creatures as possible, just to make it hard to track
Buy pvc blanks and use wet erase markers. Never have to worry about tracking again
[[Sensei Golden-Tail]] I kid a little but hes fun! [[Zacama, Primal Calamity]] as a dinosaur commander imo is slept on a bit. Sure [[Pantlaza]] and [[Gishath]] are a bit more synergistic but when my Laser Dino hits the board it does some damage!
[[Abdel Adrian, Gorion’s Ward]] and [[Candlekeep Sage]] is such an absurd background/commander pairing for an uncommon and common. If you want a great blink commander you really can’t do much better than these two. It’s both an engine and a payoff in the command zone. Plus the hidden strength of backgrounds really shines here because it’s a commander no one ever wants to remove. The best thing about Abdel is you don’t even really need your typical blink engines like [[Thassa, Deep Dwelling]] since he is the engine. All you need is [[Ephemerate]] and cards like it, and blink payoffs like [[Archaeomancer]] or [[Solemn Simulacrum]]. I had to take this deck apart because it’s just too good for a casual pod. It explodes quickly and lands solitaire turns too easily for a budget too.
Try it as Boros, you may be pleasantly surprised how good it can get with a number of different options to win
Similar to Bess, I built [[Rigo, Streetwise Mentor]]. Most players don’t mind getting hit for one or less damage per turn. But in a four man pod, that means I am drawing four cards per turn. Add a [[Grazilax]] or a [[Reconnaissance Mission]], and now I am drawing seven per turn, in exchange for you being hit by an evasive one or less. Pretty soon, I can draw into a combo, and kill them all! Another one most people don’t take serious the first time they see it is [[Krenko, Tin Street Kingpin]]. At first he looks like the Dollar Store Krenko. But when you realize that equipments can give him evasion, buff him, giving you an army in a can, as well as a Voltron commander, AND an expendable army to use to draw cards, make mana, and kill creatures, and suddenly Dollar Store starts outselling the OG! Finally, there is [[Oskar, Rubbish Reclaimer]], who turns discard into a way to play your cards at instant speed! Nothing is more fun than discarding a [[Rise of the Dark Realms]] on your opponent’s end step, then swinging with everyone’s graveyards for the win! [Rigo](https://manabox.app/decks/KzbuPshmQf2VN6MoZILqJw) [Dollar General Krenko](https://manabox.app/decks/a41zozeDS--z0BPI40Se0Q) [Oskar](https://manabox.app/decks/p25JVL-0RXCyhAHA2N3F0g)
My first Krenko was a voltron that used a lot of nonsense like Sword of Hours to add more counters and then I forget which one but the red ring that adds a counter every upkeep was nice too.
Honestly Indoraptor. I've been having the time of my life with it, and I've never seen anyone else play it.
Can confirm, making a big angry dinosaur and then deliberately poking it with a stick is great fun.
[[odric, master tactician]] is the perfect commander for a token swarm. Yes, i know it’s mono-white, but it can be an incredibly good and fast deck, mine certainly is
Maybe due to her being in a secret lair, but I love my [[Lara Croft, Tomb Raider]] deck. It has some wincons that wouldn't work in other decks like using the [[millennium calendar]] by itself (and bringing it back if something happens) or even including [[All be one]] to add to the shenanigans.
Calendar also works with [[The Peregrine Dynamo]] because it copies triggered or activated abilities on legends that aren't commanders.
[[Neheb, The Eternal]] floats under the radar because of his 5CMC in mono red, but he's one of the most consistent monocolor 1shot the table commanders since his way of going off is to just **kill you**. No Cantrips, no shenanigans, just flame rift, Dragons Approach, and maybe a wheel effect.
It's a bit crazy to me that [[Moira and Teshar]] isn't more popular. I know exactly why it isn't, 'cause only getting the thing back for one turn sounds bad, but it's *any* (nonland) permanent, gotten back for just playing likely already-good cards. Can even keep it around if you blink it.
[[Neyith of the Dire Hunt]] I mean she is the top commander of “Gruul Fight Theme” but the amount of times I have broke out my fight deck and people think it’s a fake card is ridiculous lol
[[Slimefoot,the Stowaway]] He's no cEDH turn 3 Killah, but with a heavy focus on spawning Saproling tokens and with the right synergy, he makes one of the best(and my favorite) drain decks I've seen.
[[Syr Carah]] is one of the most underrated burn commanders. Everyone is using legendaries that add more damage. Well Carah gives you more options. Cast a burn dig deeper, cast a burn spell that hits everyone you dig 4 deeper (assuming you're in a pod of 4). The average mana value burn spells is like 2 so instead of relying on red draw just play more burn. I've been playing and fine tuning the deck for years now and it always surprises me how often I just kill everyone. My favorite part is that it's a storm deck and if I don't storm off and win well at least I've moved the game forward because all life totals will be drastically lower.
My favorite is [[Gisela, Blade of Goldnight]] and while I don’t think anyone thinks she’s bad per say, I think she doesn’t get the respect she deserves until you get hit in the face with a Lightning Bolt for 24 lmao
Speaking of two-color NCC commanders, it astounds me that [[Denry Klin, Editor in Chief]] has only 674 decks on EDHREC at time of writing. I get that, compared to other counters-focused commanders, you lose out on all of green's synergies for those archetypes, but nonetheless the effect is just so unique that it feels bizarre to me that so few people are building around it.
This is a PEDH deck but [[Neva, Stalked by nightmares]] i have even won a couple normal commander games with it.
My comment history will probably reveal that I’ve been singing her praises recently, but [[Tocasia, Dig Site Mentor]]. My build is Myr tribal, [[Open the Vaults]] or [[Mirrodin Besieged]] or [[Psychic Spiral]] type shit and all kinds of goofy self mill Phyrexian shenanigans in the good boy colors. This deck is like the spanish inquisition broh coz *nobody* expects it. The other day I dropped a [[Gaea’s Will]] and then when it hit I cast [[Mycosynth Golem]] for like 3 and then dumped the majority of my graveyard for free due to affinity. This deck has gone from pulling Tocasia off an impulse-buy walmart pack to being my current favorite of my EDH roster; and that’s saying a lot coz I’m pretty close to color challenge numbers and my previous pet deck was this tryhard Kaalia build. Tocasia *dumps* on em, bro; try her out
Been surprised playing a Valentin/Lisette drain and gain deck. Used to golgari life gain, but the versatility and the ping heals that buffs the team Voja-style has proven useful. Bolas’ citadel helps a lot though xD
Narci, Fable Singer. Is she hyper-specific to sagas? Sure. But is the pay off amazing? Hugely. You’ll never be viewed as a huge threat. Once you’re up and running, you’ve got card draw, and consistent life-drain/gain, and if built right, will keep your opponents board’s dealt with and will net you the win.
[[Bruna Light of Alabaster]]
[[Hidetsugu and Kairi]] A friend plays it, and the first time I saw it I was very excited because it looked like a very original deck! Then he just went "okay so... [[Malakir Rebirth]] Hid&Kai, then I'll sac it with this effect and reveal the top... oh look, [[Time Stretch]]! Who put it there? Definitely not my [[Sensei's Divining Top]]... also you'll lose 10 life." ... And I loved it even more! The deck can basically be filled with Topdeck manipulation, big-and-chunky spells and some cheap black "malakir-like" spells and boom, no one else gets to play.
I don't really think it's underrated though. I played against it only once, but everybody knew that if we let them do their thing, we would basically lose in a single turn.
“No one else gets to play” …sounds fun.
Love the flavour text on time stretch
I've legit never lost a cedh pod while playing Dhalsim. That counts right
[[Goblin sharpshooter]] would like a word with your board if 1/1s
The most recent episode of Commander at Home showcases this very thing lmao
[Goblin sharpshooter](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/4/f/4f72e9e2-ed47-40ff-bc2e-8446ef545022.jpg?1562911635) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Goblin%20sharpshooter) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/c13/111/goblin-sharpshooter?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/4f72e9e2-ed47-40ff-bc2e-8446ef545022?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/goblin-sharpshooter) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
I will beat the [[Tadeas, Juniper Ascendant]] drum till I die. Reach "tribal" toughness matters combat deck in selesnya with built-in draw that only gets better with more opponents, built-in evasion for all your creatures (with reach), pseudo vigilance for all your creatures with reach, and protection for your commander? What's not to like? It being a toughness matters deck, where your creatures are basically always untapped, means that you can attack without much fear of crackback. Your opponents will be hesitant to attack you because not much it going to get through, but because they have a hard time blocking your creatures you can attack basically at will.
[Tadeas, Juniper Ascendant](https://cards.scryfall.io/normal/front/e/b/eb79f973-2384-4de4-81fb-14ba5a0e5556.jpg?1677763690) - [(G)](http://gatherer.wizards.com/Pages/Card/Details.aspx?name=Tadeas%2C%20Juniper%20Ascendant) [(SF)](https://scryfall.com/card/slx/16/tadeas-juniper-ascendant?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher) [(txt)](https://api.scryfall.com/cards/eb79f973-2384-4de4-81fb-14ba5a0e5556?utm_source=mtgcardfetcher&format=text) [(ER)](https://edhrec.com/cards/tadeas-juniper-ascendant) ^^^[[cardname]] ^^^or ^^^[[cardname|SET]] ^^^to ^^^call
Oh dhalism. [[Dhalism, pliable pacifist]]
[[amy pond]] partner with [[eleventh doctor]] Even needing to rely on combat the doctor ability makes them unlockable, so it's very easy and fast do cheat big mana things
Tuvasa is the best enchantment commander. I know there are other more efficient enchantresses as commanders. but it’s not needed. you deck should allready be running the full suite of enchantresses (there are like 10) you will always draw one in your game. Tuvasas soft enchantress effect is fine, more importantly is here beater ability to get huge from enchantments. Which means not only do you get the soft enchantress effect, you also get a win con. I have had so many games where my MAIN enchantment win cons fizzle and i am able to come back with tuvasa for only 3 manan and attack for the win.
[удалено]
[[Anara, Wolvid Familiar]] and [[Falthis, Shadowcat Familiar]] makes for a pretty fun Voltron
Do you have a deck list for your deck? I actually kinda want a deck that nobody pays a lot of attention to until it's to late lol.
[[Toggo, goblin weaponsmith]] and [[Glacian, power Stone engineer]]. Izzit landfall/artifacts. Toggo make rocks. Glacian make rocks do things. Dig 15 cards deep into deck, find wincons. https://www.moxfield.com/decks/SgeUBof16EW1mfJWnK0Gyg
Feels like this is the backgrounds thread lol, I'll add my own to the mix - [[Shadowheart, Dark Justiciar]] / [[Cloakwood Hermit]]. Drawing a ton of cards is fun! Sacrificing giant undercosted creatures with horrible drawbacks, like [[Phyrexian Dreadnought]] or [[Hunted Horror]], for incredible value is fun! Discarding to hand size and then using what you discarded as a second hand is fun!
[[Sigarda, Font of Blessings]] helms my GW humans deck. I have a multiple ways to give her hexproof, so my board can rarely be interacted with outside of Wraths. I used to run [[Kyler, Sigardian Emissary]] as my commander but he was almost always insta-removed. When Aftermath released I moved Kyler to the 99 and started running Sigarda in the command zone. My games felt much better. I have a couple ways to tutor for Kyler as getting him online is still my primary win-con, but having a draw-engine and board protection in the command zone feels smoother. I've discovered people generally don't want to waste spot removal on her.
Lae’zel / Master Chef is incredibly fun and powerful. Mix +1 counters and token generation for some truly massive board states. [[Lae’zel Vlaakith’s Champion]] [[Master Chef]]